Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
1The Problem and Its Solution The nationâs 6,000 plus transit agencies need to have access to a program that can provide authoritatively researched, specific, limited-scope studies of legal issues and problems having national significance and applica- tion to their business. Some transit programs involve legal problems and issues that are not shared with other modes; as, for example, compliance with transit- equipment and operations guidelines, FTA financing initiatives, private-sector programs, and labor or environ- mental standards relating to transit operations. Also, much of the information that is needed by transit attorneys to address legal concerns is scattered and fragmented. Con- sequently, it would be helpful to the transit lawyer to have well-resourced and well-documented reports on specific legal topics available to the transit legal community. The Legal Research Digests (LRDs) are developed to assist transit attorneys in dealing with the myriad of initiatives and problems associated with transit start-up and operations, as well as with day-to-day legal work. The LRDs address such issues as eminent domain, civil rights, constitutional rights, contracting, environmental concerns, labor, procurement, risk management, security, tort liability, and zoning. The transit legal research, when conducted through the TRBâs legal studies process, either collects primary data that generally are not available else- where or performs analysis of existing literature. Foreword The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) is committed to maximizing the economic benefits of infrastructure investments through Buy Legal Research Digest 49 TRANSIT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM Sponsored by the Federal Transit Administration May 2017 UPDATED GUIDE TO BUY AMERICA REQUIREMENTSâ2015 SUPPLEMENT This report was prepared under TCRP Project J-05, âLegal Aspects of Transit and Intermodal Transportation Programs,â for which the Transportation Research Board is the agency coordinating the research. The report was prepared under Topic 16-01 by Timothy R. Wyatt, Conner Gwyn Schenck PLLC, Greensboro, North Carolina. James B. McDaniel, TRB Counsel for Legal Research Projects, was the principal investigator and content editor. Responsible Senior Program Officer: Gwen Chisholm Smith America provisions that ensure that transportation infrastructure projects are built with American made products. Funding for infrastructure investments is derived through the various grant programs of multiple agencies housed within and, in some instances, outside of USDOT, with each agency having differing statutory and regulatory Buy America requirements that may be attached to the funding. This digest examines various statutory and regulatory Buy America requirements that a state or local gov- ernmental entity must examine when receiving funds for a public transportation project from one or more USDOT agencies. Of particular interest is the state of Buy America law, regulations, and practice in the context of infrastructure and construction projects, with particular focus on materials made primarily of steel or iron, facilities as manufactured end products, and utility relocation. In September 2001, TRB published TCRP Legal Research Digest 17: Guide to Buy America Require- ments. Subsequently, TCRP Legal Research Digest 31: Guide to Federal Buy America Requirementsâ2009 Supplement explored the Buy America requirements with an emphasis on the specific requirements that apply to manufactured products and rolling stock. This digest serves as an update of the earlier TCRP digests and specifically provides a comprehensive and current summary of the Federal Transit Administration Buy America provisions. The digest will be useful for transit attorneys, procurement officials, policy makers, and all other persons interested in transit-related Buy America requirements.
